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TvTel Selects UTStarcom GEPON Technology for Fiber-To-The-Home Network in Portugal

CHICAGO, June 19 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- NXTCOMM -- UTStarcom, Inc.
(Nasdaq: UTSI), a global leader in IP-based, end-to-end networking solutions
and services, today announced a contract to deploy its Gigabit Ethernet
Passive Optical Network (GEPON) solution with TvTel, an integrated multimedia
service provider, for the operator's new fiber-to-the-home network in
Portugal. Unitelco, a local technology company in Portugal with expertise
deploying fiber and cutting-edge access networks, is serving as the integrator
for the contract.

TvTel Selects UTStarcom GEPON Technology for Fiber-To-The-Home Network in Portugal
TvTel Selects UTStarcom GEPON Technology for Fiber-To-The-Home Network in Portugal

New Network to Deliver Voice, Data and IPTV Services in Portugal

(Logo: https://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20051013/SFTH063LOGO)

'UTStarcom's GEPON solution will serve as the foundation of our new fiber
network and enable us to quickly, efficiently and affordably leapfrog our
competitors in the race to deliver more bandwidth to the end user,' said Paulo
Pereira, executive director of TvTel. 'Their innovative technology, coupled
with their proven experience in successfully deploying large-scale fiber
networks around the world, made UTStarcom a compelling partner to assist us in
delivering triple play services in Portugal.'

Launched in February, TVTel's bundled service package consists of high-
speed data, voice and both analog and digital QAM television and is initially
targeted at 5,000 subscribers in Oeiras, a city west of Lisbon.

'Our GEPON solution is an ideal FTTH technology because it leverages the
simplicity of Ethernet and the high speeds of fiber,' said Youssef Kassissia,
vice president of sales in the Europe, the Middle East and Africa (EMEA)
region for UTStarcom. 'GEPON is an extremely cost-effective alternative to
conventional copper-based access equipment while reducing points of failure
and simplifying carriers' network architecture.'

About UTStarcom's GEPON

Compliant with all IEEE standards, UTStarcom's GEPON product family
includes a BBS1000 Optical Line Termination system (OLT) for deployment at the
Central Office (CO) as well as a variety of Optical Network Unit (ONUs) for
deployment at the customer's premises. The OLT provides a direct optical
interface to the IP core, while the ONU terminates the PON at the customer's
premises. Together, the two units complete the end-to-end optical last mile,
providing up to one gigabit per second of bandwidth to residential and
business customers.

Advanced Layer 2 and Layer 3 switching and routing functionality
eliminates the need for carriers to deploy additional network equipment at the
metro edge, making GEPON an optimal transport platform for support of
bandwidth-intensive triple-play services. Powerful embedded Operation,
Administration, and Maintenance (OAM) functions enable operators to perform
remote diagnosis, flexible provisioning, and system reconfiguration, as well
as remote system upgrades without hardware swap out.

About TvTel

TvTel was founded seven years ago by the current management and three
venture capital partners. TVTEL has a HFC cable TV network with 200,000 homes
passed in Porto Region, and a GEPON fiber network with 10,000 homes passed in
a Lisbon suburb. In both HFC and FTTH networks, TVTEL is offering triple play
services. The company will shortly launch a DTH service using Eutelsat EB9.
The Master head-end is supplying today three different infrastructures: HFC in
Oporto forcible clients, DVB-S for future DTH clients, and FTTH fibre to the
home, delivering 50 analog and four digital channels.

About UTStarcom, Inc.

UTStarcom is a global leader in IP-based, end-to-end networking solutions
and international service and support. The company sells its broadband,
wireless, and handset solutions to operators in both emerging and established
telecommunications markets around the world. UTStarcom enables its customers
to rapidly deploy revenue-generating access services using their existing
infrastructure, while providing a migration path to cost-efficient, end-to-end
IP networks. Founded in 1991 and headquartered in Alameda, California, the
company has research and design operations in the United States, Canada,
China, Korea and India. UTStarcom is a FORTUNE 1000 company

For more information about UTStarcom, visit the company's Web site at
https://www.utstar.com.

Forward Looking Statements

The foregoing statements regarding, without limitation, the anticipated
expansion of the service provider's network system in Portugal using the
Company's products, the anticipated growth in demand for services that utilize
the Company's products and the physical location of the proposed offering of
network services are forward-looking in nature and are subject to risks,
uncertainties and other factors that may cause actual results to differ
materially. These factors include rapidly changing technology, the rapidly
changing nature of the telecommunications market in Portugal, possible delays
in system deployments, the physical nature of the locations in Portugal of the
proposed network service, and other uncertainties such as changes in
government regulation, licensing requirements, and economic and political
stability in Portugal. UTStarcom also refers readers to the risk factors
identified in its Annual Report on Form 10-K, Quarterly Reports on Form 10-Q
and Current Reports on Form 8-K as filed with the Securities and Exchange
Commission.

SOURCE UTStarcom, Inc.